Convention: We Believe in Party Membership, Not Friendship, Says Yilwatda

• Ruling party sticks with current NWC members

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, has said that the ruling party believes in members of the party and not friends of the party.

He added that there are obligations the party has for its members, which he respects as a system and party person.

Yilwatda stated this on Tuesday in Abuja after he was screened by the screening committee ahead of the party’s national convention scheduled to hold on Friday and Saturday.

To avoid party implosion, THISDAY checks revealed that the party has resolved to stick with the current members of the National Working Committee (NWC), with most of them contesting without opposition.

Yilwatda maintained that in APC, everybody is a subject of the system and how it operates.

The chairman, however, commended the screening committee for creating this belief and also ensuring that the system prevails over individuals.

Yilwatda noted that unlike other political parties where members of the convention committee make contrary statements, arguing among themselves, and sometimes fighting over issues, he has not seen anything like that in the convention committee and all the sub committees.

He stated: “We’ve seen growth in the party, and it’s not a one-man job. Some of you here have been part of the people who reached out to leaders that were brought back into APC.

“We’ve also seen the deepening of technology. The registration of the membership has given us more data-driven positioning of the party. It is now that we’ve known that our party is more youth-driven than any other party. 

“Before now, most people were telling us that they had the youths. We didn’t know that the youths were with the APC. Fifty per cent of the members of the APC are between the ages of 18 and 35.

“And it shows clearly that we have the youths on our side. We are the most youthful party in the country. People within the age of 50 and above make up just 18 per cent of the membership of the party. 

“And it clearly shows that the party is one of the most youthful parties in the country, which means the party has a future. And it’s also good for us to know that the party has a future. You can see that in some of the movements that have been going on. If you attend rallies, if you attend meetings of our party, you’ll discover that most of the attendees are young people. And it gives us a clear future for this party.

“You can see some of the people elected. The youngest people elected on the platform of any political party are from the APC—the people in their 30s in the House of Representatives, the people in their early 40s in the House of Representatives—they are mostly in the APC.

“So it shows that APC builds a more inclusive system than any other political party in Nigeria. The same applies to the women factor. Though we don’t have enough women in the National Assembly right now, we are working to ensure inclusion in our party.”

The chairman pointed out that APC is the only political party with a presence across all six geo-political zones. 

Yilwatda added: “Is it the governors? Is it the membership? Is it winning elections? If you look at all the by-elections conducted, we’ve won elections in all six zones.

“No political party has done this in the last year. Most political parties dominate only a zone, but APC has presence in all six geopolitical zones—we’ve won in Kano, Zaria, Adamawa, the South-west, the South-south and the South-east. It shows the reach and strength of the party.

“So, for us, it is time to consolidate on everything we’re doing. Even in the congress and commission we are having right now, we have the least legal issues. Most issues have been settled by simple arbitration rather than court processes.

“The fact that our members can subject themselves to arbitration rather than going to court is a big plus. From the local government congresses to state congresses and even at the zonal level, we’ve not had a single court case. It shows that APC is a party of system, and even the members believe in the system and the processes we follow.

“That’s the big plus for us. It’s not just about the national leadership, but leadership at sub-national levels too.

“If elected again, to expand what we’ve been doing and ensure the party wins overwhelmingly. I can assure you, Your Excellency Senator Oji Kalu, that we don’t believe in ‘friends of the party’. We believe in members of the party. Friendship is different from membership, and there are obligations the party has for its members. I respect those obligations as a system and party person.”

Speaking, the Deputy National Organising Secretary of the party, Nze Duru, said contrary to perception, the Friday’s convention is not a coronation but a consensus arrangement.

His words: “I would like to say that it is majorly consensus. It also underpins the basic tenet for which APC is known for. As much as possible, building a consensus, bringing people together behind the scene, working harder to ensure that there is no rupture and there is no implosion, as people would like to have it. 

“It does not mean that there are no contests. It doesn’t mean that there are no disagreements. But once the party has the internal mechanism, there can only be one person that occupies an office, it cannot be two, and if it is two, it makes it a lot more easier.”

Also, the National Secretary of the party, Senator Ajibola Basiru, said the committee acknowledged what they have been doing since they have been in the saddle since August 2023. 

He said they were charged to continue to work towards making the party cohesive and to ensure fairness and justice to all party members.

Basiru noted: “So, by and large, when you are going to the party and you are contesting for the same position, it will be a double-edged sword.

“There will be an albatross if you are not giving a good account. We thank God that since we took over the mantle of leadership, salutary development has occurred in our party. Even before the amendment of the electoral act, we were able to drive registration which brought party members to about 12 million. 

“We have also been able to ensure functional and effective secretariat for our party, with an efficient and a group-based capital of enlarging capacity of the party. 

“Of course, in terms of the process of the party, the conduct of primaries and organisation of activities, we have been able to ensure that we have brought a seamless and a safe-lying competence into that office. 

“As I told the screening committee, one of the tasks that we have to do is to consolidate the strength of the party, and of course to ensure that our party structure, from the polling units up to the national convention, becomes very active. 

“Particularly, the National Advisory Council of our party needs to be activated immediately after the convention. And we believe that if we activate all our structures, make them functionally efficient, APC will continue to remain forward with electoral friction and democratic consolidation.”